A\N: Thanks to Sophie for the nice review.
Standing underneath the vaulted ceilings of the council hall, Sara felt like an imposter. The imposing room was the oldest in the building and had the longest running history of almost any singular room in any of the eight realms. With its mural-covered high ceilings, intricately carved wooden furniture and air of progress, it was an intimidating room to be in.
Thousands of centuries earlier, when it had first been built, hundreds of mages had been employed to spell the room, its furniture, its decorations and every stone that made it up, to create an air of disquiet for any other then the Leader of whatever group was using it. As such, it allowed the Leader to wield a more complete power over others in the room. Should the Leader wish to exploit the patrons' discomfort, they could, the same way they could put a group at ease by sharing their own comfort with those around them. At least, that was how it was supposed to work.
The moment Sara stepped into the room, all she could feel was cold. She could feel the heat from the bodies in the room seeping into the stones; feel the buzz of their discomfort seeping into her own body. The chair reserved for her at the head of the table – beautiful dark wood carved with images of storms and surging animals – looked too big, like it would swallow her whole of its own accord. Rhea, sitting in a smaller chair, waved her over.
You're late. She let her voice speak in Sara's mind alone, not allowing her displeasure to show to anybody else, not undermining Sara's authority though she had a right to do so.
"I apologize for my tardiness." Sara said, sitting in the chair as regally as she could manage. The seat was hard and un-cushioned, the carvings underneath digging into her thighs.
"All is forgiven." Rhea said easily. She turned to the council. "We are here to discuss the plan of action concerning the Ruler's increasing presence in our land. We would hear the council of any who may offer a solution."
Sara nodded her accord. "Any who wish to speak may speak now."
A grey haired man she couldn't identify rose. He was tall and willowy, not hunched over as his age would suggest. Though she didn't know him by name, she identified him as an archivist by the signet ring on his right hand.
"In the past," he said. "When there has been a division of power between two groups, many Leaders have absorbed the authority of the opposing group and Led co-operatively. This not only eliminates the need for an offensive attack, but also lessens the possibility of rebellions from either side."
"Wise, but improbable." Sara said. "We would not associate with demons."
The archivist nodded and sat just as another, older woman rose. Unlike her predecessor, she was bent almost double with age, her skin hanging from her bones as if it had been left there to dry.
"The killed my boy." She rasped. "I say we destroy them all."
The council swelled with murmurs of agreement and disbelief. The women's cracked smile unfurled on her face. Violet stood on the opposite side of the table and leaned towards the woman.
"Do you have any idea how that would ruin us?" She asked quietly. The collective roar cut off suddenly, their eyes on the woman and the mind-reader.
"We would be victorious." The woman said, her eyes feverish. Violet turned to Sara.
"She knows how it would destroy us, yet she doesn't care." The council's eyes were hard on the woman.
"Do you not offer protection for villagers? Reimbursement for a death?"
"She wants revenge." Violet's eyes were closed against the onslaught of the woman's thoughts and memories. "She wants you to go into battle against the Ruler, to try and kill him again. She blames you for not protecting her son. She wants you to avenge him." Violet's purple eyes opened, fixed fiercely on Sara. "She wants you to die trying."
Sara looked to the woman, then to the men standing on either side of the door. "Remove her."
The council watched as the woman was taken from the room, still raging under her breath. Sara's eyes followed their progression, but Rhea's gaze pierced the council – each member individually.
"If any others share this woman's opinion, I would suggest you remove yourselves before we are forced to do it for you."
On an unspoken signal, Violet looked at the council, picking out three members with a nod of her head. Rhea glared at them until they stood and disappeared through the doors.
"I hope we can get through the rest of this without any further distractions?" Rhea raised an eyebrow at the council. "Good. Let's continue."
After the council members had all left, Rhea and Sara still remained. Rhea had relaxed her posture after the need for formality had been removed, but Sara was still rigid in her chair.
"They were so vocal." She said quietly. Rhea smiled sympathetically, noting her friend's shock with a slight but heavily concealed displeasure.
"They usually are."
"I don't remember that." She murmured.
"Things are different now." Rhea shrugged it off more easily than Sara ever could have. "Council meetings aren't as formally run. We need all the input we can get, and we can't risk somebody removing their support from the council because we didn't take their opinion."
"But we didn't even get anything from it. No solution, no plan of action, nothing."
"That's the way they usually go these days. We need five meetings where we only needed one before." Rhea smiled. "It's like pulling teeth, but it has to be done."
"We need some kind of action. We can't just let the Ruler keep pushing us around like this."
"What do you propose we do?"
Sara drummed her fingers thoughtfully on the table. "I'd like to do some looking around, get some information on what we're up against."
"Everything we have is on file in the basement, but it's not a lot."
"I need spies." Sara stood and wrapped her arms around herself. "Good ones that we can trust. Can you do that?"
"When do you want them by?"
"As soon as you can get them for me."
"Tonight?"
"Can you?"
"I can do anything." Rhea said fiercely. Sara raised her hands in surrender, but kept her eyes trained on her friend.
"Alright. Tonight, then. Midnight."
"I'll tell you where they'll meet you."
"Thanks." Sara's smile was grateful. "You're a godsend."
"I wouldn't say that." Though the rest of her looked innocent, Rhea's eyes were dark. "I want something in return."
"If I can give it to you, I will."
"Don't undermine me in front of the council."
Sara blinked.
"I barely said a word in front of the council."
"That's also a problem," Rhea conceded, "but what you did say was 'we would not associate with demons.' The backlash of that will be hell for me."
"Rhea," Sara's voice softened. "I didn't mean it like that. I didn't think -"
"Yeah, you didn't think. That's the whole problem."
Rhea stood and walked the perimeter of the room, letting her hands trail over the stone in the walls. Her shoulders were tense and her hand was too hard on the stones, her nails scraping grotesquely every so often.
"They already dislike me," She continued. "Simply because I'm not you. They want you but have to settle for me. Then there's my heritage, which is a whole other ball game. Do you know I've actually got a bunch of fundamentalists chasing after me with burning stakes in the name of racial purity?"
"I'm sorry." Sara bowed her head. "I didn't know."
"No, you really don't." Rhea's head was also bowed, but Sara expected that it was less out of shame than to hide whatever was making her voice so weak. "It's hard to live when there are so many people being so unnecessarily vicious towards you. Of course, you wouldn't know." She barked out a humourless laugh. "The sun rises and sets on you. You weren't born of a magical father who nobody trusts and a demon mother who nobody likes enough to try to. But," she added, "I came to terms long ago with the fact that I'm just not you."
"I didn't mean to make you seem inferior. When I spoke, I was thinking of full-blood demons, not half-bloods like you. You're practically human anyways, and that's how I've always seen you."
"Practically human." Rhea's hand brushed her hunched back. "They don't seem to think so."
"Well, I do." Sara said, lingering in the doorframe. "And that's the only thing that matters."
A/N: I always love reviews, so let me know what you think! Thanks for reading!